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WESTMOUNT INDEPENDENT – November 4-5, 2008 – 15
What’s Cooking in Westmount?
An apple a day...
St. Matthias’ Christmas
pudding production
By Anthea Dawson
The tell-tale signs of fall are
making it hard to deny the
fact that summer is officially
over for the year. The gorgeous
turning leaves holding
onto their branches for
dear life, the cold crisp
nights and the serious
abundance of pumpkins at all the local
markets make it pretty hard to ignore the
fact that November is here.
Autumn is actually my favourite season
for these very reasons, my concern is that
it is just way too short and inevitably leads
to scary days of winter. But it is definitely
the time to be taking advantage of Quebec’s
most exciting season for produce,
from the beautiful squashes, to local
mushrooms and tart cranberries, and especially
our famous apples.
Varieties
Staring at the various bins of overflowing
apples at the Atwater Market can be a
bit overwhelming to know exactly what
you are looking at. We are so lucky in Quebec
to have so many different varietals, but
too many choices can sometimes be a bad
thing. Cortland, McIntosh, Royal Gala,
Lobo, Spartan, and Empire are probably
the most common local apples to choose
from, but it is hard to know how they differ
from one another and which kind is
the best for your quick snack or for mashing
up in to applesauce.
Choose carefully
As far as snacking goes, your best bet
(depending, of course, on your taste)
would be the McIntosh or the Empire,
both with firm red skin, full of juice and
excellent sweet and sourness. McIntosh
also work well for cooking and especially
juicing. Spartan apples are also very versatile
(known as the all-purpose apple), as
they are very crisp and tart. According to
apple specialists, the ratio between sweetness
and tartness (called the brix/acid ratio
amongst those in the apple world) is the
key determining factor in rating an apple.
Just like a fine white wine, a “good” tasting
apple should be very well balanced in
both regards. Apples lose sweetness and
tartness in storage, so it is very important
to keep them in the fridge to preserve this
for as long as possible.
Dessert apples
Lobos are great for making applesauce,
and when it comes to desserts, picking the
right kind of apple is key. Red Delicious, a
great sweet snack and probably one of the
most famous apples (from the US and
available all throughout the year) is terrible
in pies, but crisp and tart Granny
Smiths and McIntosh are excellent
choices (the combo of both is actually
ideal) as they retain their texture and can
stand up to the sweetness of the other ingredients.
Generally speaking, apples that
are more tart fare better in desserts for that
reason – sometimes being too sweet can
overwhelm a delicious recipe. Bencroft is
probably the sourest of all the local apples
and may be a bit too much for your palate,
but the best way to know for sure is to have
a little bite before cooking.
Sweet is good, too
But sweet apples aren’t necessarily a
bad thing, as they are great for packing in
to lunches and mid-afternoon snacks. Yellow-skinned
Ginger Golds are a real treat
right now (and are only around for another
month), as are the Royal Galas, which will
be around a few months longer. Cortland
apples are ideal for slicing in to salads (or
any recipe that calls for raw apples), as
they do not turn brown once exposed to
the air. They also retain their shape and
texture making them perfect for baking.
With so many varieties of apples, hopefully
now you can narrow down your
choice a little bit, depending on what sort
of a dish you are planning.
Please take advantage of this gorgeous
fall season and all it has to offer!
Every year around this time, the kitchen
at St. Matthias’ Church steams with the
smells of traditional Christmas pudding.
This year is no exception. Eleven volunteers
work on the preparation and steaming
of the puddings, using the recipe from
Betty Doidge (wife of the church’s past rector,
Archdeacon Jack Doidge.) According
to the group, there is much demand for
their puddings. In fact, in order to fill their
orders, there are seven baking sessions,
each making 36 pounds. They say they
hear that many families today don’t like
plum puddings, but they venture “What is
Christmas without the brandy-soaked
flaming pudding? Fortunately for us,
many are of the same opinion!” The hard
work pays pays off in the kitchen fun.
The St. Matthias’ Church annual
Christmas Fair takes place on Saturday,
Munroe-Blum and Howlett
named ‘great Montrealers’
The Board of Trade of Metropolitan
Montreal recognized Westmount residents
Heather Munroe-Blum and Peter
Howlett as great Montrealers at a lunch on
October 29.
Munroe-Blum is a psychiatric epidemiologist
and the principal of McGill University.
She was recognized for her role
“advising governments and other organizations
on the role that universities and research
play in advancing international
competitiveness and enriching societies.”
Investor, environmentalist and former
Alouette Howlett was recognized for his
“strong commitment to the community,”
including his work with Les Amis de la
From left to right: Loy Denis, Sally Stephenson, Margaret Nicolai, Paula Gillett.
Montagne and addiction charity Portage
Canada, which he founded. Howlett has
also raised money for The Priory and Centre
Greene.
Electronic
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November 8 from 10 am to 2 pm at the
church (10 Church Hill). Among the items
sold are attic treasures including china,
crystal and silver, gifts, jewellery, linens,
books, baked goods, Christmas cakes and
more. Lunch will be served. Proceeds go
to the church as well as the other outreach
programs that the parish supports. For
more information, call 514.933.4295.